Initiation and evolution of systemic innovations: Patterns and interactions in the emergence of additive manufacturing technologies

Abstract

Technological innovations are becoming increasingly systemic in the complex and interconnected world. The initiation and evolution of systemic innovations take time and include numerous challenges, and the mechanisms through which systemic innovations emerge in the interaction between different technologies represent a research gap. This paper explores the emergence of ceramic additive manufacturing as an example of a systemic manufacturing technology innovation. We implemented an event history analysis of four ceramic-material additive manufacturing technologies. We traced the initiation and evolution paths of each of the four technologies over time and showed a pattern of activities within and across the technologies. The study contributes by revealing that systemic innovations emerge as a result of parallel and sequential development paths of within-technology system components as well as the interaction between multiple technologies. The timing of the coalescing development paths of the system components and technologies appears crucial but serendipitous instead of coordinated. The findings open new pathways for speeding up the emergence of systemic innovations and forthcoming research to support the evolution of additive manufacturing.